Bel Air Monday Storm Update: Trash Pickup Rescheduled

BEL AIR, MD – Government offices in the town of Bel Air will be closed on Monday, Jan. 25, as cleanup continues from the weekend blizzard that reportedly dropped 33 inches of snow in north Bel Air.

Recycling will not be collected this week, town officials announced on Sunday; see the full announcement at the end of this post.

Trash collection will be collected on a revised schedule:

• Trash scheduled for pickup on Monday will instead be collected on Thursday.
• Trash scheduled for pickup Tuesday will be picked up on Friday.

Public works crews in the town of Bel Air and Harford County continue to clear roads.

Bel Air’s Director of Public Works Stephen Kline said 99 percent of the town’s roadways would be cleared by 5 p.m. Sunday.

Emergency Manager Rick Ayers said 52 percent of county roads had at least one pass with the plow by Sunday night, and it would take two days to get to all.

At a Sunday press conference, State Highways Director Gregory C. Johnson said he expects crews to have interstates and other main highways cleared of snow by Monday morning. Secondary and local roads will still be covered by snow.

Harford County schools and government offices will be closed Monday, with state government closed as well.

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• Closing Update from Harford County Public Schools

“I want to thank the citizens of Maryland for heeding our call to be patient and to be safe by staying off the roads,” Gov. Larry Hogan said Sunday. “[Monday] morning conditions will be icy and dangerous. By closing state offices tomorrow, crews can carry on with their work to clear state roads.”

Hogan said the state will seek federal disaster relief to help recoup the recovery costs of Maryland’s biggest ever snowfall.

Storm Jonas Update from the Town of Bel Air and Mayor Susan Burdette; Jan. 24

The aftermath of Storm Jonas will continue to adversely impact Harford County. The ferocity and impact of the storm will remain for at least several days in forms gusty winds, drifting snow, hazardous roadways and slippery walkways. The storm has achieved an onerous ranking of being a “Top 5” worse snow storm in Harford County, according to County Executive Barry Glassman.

Mr. Stephen Kline the Director of Department of Public Works has indicated that 99% of the town roadways will be cleared by 5:00 pm today. DPW and the Police Department have remained on-duty throughout the storm event keeping our town safe. Thank you for your patience and support during this challenging event. Town employees will continue to work around the clock in restorative efforts.

Important things to keep in mind over the next several days:

1. Staying home allows highway support crews to more effectively accomplish their jobs. Stay tuned to one of many authorized alert systems for updates on when it is safe to return to vehicular travel. Driving should be accomplished on an “as needed” basis.
2. The Town of Bel Air is offering courtesy parking for the Town of Bel Air Parking Garage for town citizens until the crisis has been stabilized. This has been extended thru Monday 1/25/16.
3. Prepare for the possibility of power outages, however, don’t operate generators in doors and don’t cook on grills indoors.
4. All houses of the Bel Air Volunteer Fire Company will be open as warming centers if there are power outages.
5. Exercise extreme caution while approaching intersections with non-functioning signals. All operators are obligated to come to a complete stop at an intersection with non-functioning traffic signals and then proceed with caution.
6. Vision obstructions may exist because of snow piles.
7. Department of public works; police and fire personnel are activated, however, patience is a necessity as public services may be overwhelmed.
8. Please exercise common sense and good judgement while shoveling snow. Harford County is experiencing many calls for service for citizens who have overextended themselves in this taxing endeavor. Don’t be afraid to ask for help!
9. Clear snow from exterior vents around your home and/or businesses.
10. If you must drive have cat litter/sand/salt in your vehicle for traction
11. Check on the elderly and vulnerable individuals in your neighborhoods
12. The Harford County Department of Emergency Services (https://www.facebook.com/HarfordCoEM/) offers some great storm tips and storm updates. The Harford County Emergency Services Hotline is 410-838-5800.
13. Additionally, the Maryland Emergency Management Agency (https://news.maryland.gov/mema/) has storm tips and updates.

Town of Bel Air Makes Storm Announcement; 1 p.m. on Jan. 24

Town of Bel Air Government Offices Closed, Modified Refuse Collection

Town of Bel Air Government offices will be closed on Monday Jan. 25.

Due to this weekend’s blizzard, the Town of Bel Air’s regular schedule for trash, recycling and bulk will be as follows:

If your trash is scheduled to be collected on Monday, it will be picked up on Thursday, January 28, 2016.
If your trash is scheduled to be collected on Tuesday, it will be picked up on Friday, January 29, 2016.

There will be NO BULK this week in Homestead (section 4) and Howard Park (section 3) areas. Those sections will now be rescheduled for Wednesday, Feb. 10, 2016.

Recycling will not be picked up for residents this week.

We are sorry for any inconvenience this may cause. Town of Bel Air Public Works will continue snow clean up in the days to follow. We thank you in advance for your cooperation and patience.

Message from Harford Emergency Manager Rick Ayers on Jan. 24; 6 p.m.

Good Evening,

This is Emergency Manager Rick Ayers. Our Harford County crews have been on the road all day today concentrating their efforts on reopening the County’s Emergency and Primary routes.

Some areas of the county received more than 30 inches of snow overall in this historic blizzard.

Please remember two things:

1) There are 1,000+ miles of County roadways and over 1,200 cul-de-sacs. As of now, approximately 52 percent of the roads have had one pass from a snow plow. And it will take at least two full days to get to them all.

2) Please understand that driveways will get plowed in, which is an unavoidable consequence of moving snow off the roads. We apologize in advance and appreciate your understanding.

Thanks & Be Safe.